* * *
When the soul leaves the body, it is no longer under the burden and control of space and time. The soul is free; distance and separation hinder it no more. The dead are our nearest neighbors; they are all around us. Meister Eckhart was once asked, Where does the soul of a person go when the person dies? He said, no place. Where else would the soul be going? Where else is the eternal world? It can be nowhere other than here. We have falsely spatialized the eternal world. We have driven the eternal out into some kind of distant galaxy. Yet the eternal world does not seem to be a place but rather a different state of being. The soul of the person goes no place because there is no place else to go. This suggests that the dead are here with us, in the air that we are moving through all the time. The only difference between us and the dead is that they are now in an invisible form. You cannot see them with the human eye. But you can sense the presence of those you love who have died. With the refinement of your soul, you can sense them. You feel that they are near.* * *
(C) John O'Donohue. All rights reserved.
Permission requests should be directed to:linda@johnodonohue.com
www.johnodonohue.com
From Benedictus (To Bless The Space Between Us in the U.S.)
"On Passing a Graveyard"
May perpetual light shine upon
The faces of all who rest here.
May the lives they lived
Unfold further in spirit.
May the remembering earth
Mind every memory they brought.
May the rains from the heavens
Fall gently upon them.
May the wildflowers and grasses
Whisper their wishes into the light.
May we reverence the village of presence
In the stillness of this silent field.
"On Passing a Graveyard"
May perpetual light shine upon
The faces of all who rest here.
May the lives they lived
Unfold further in spirit.
May the remembering earth
Mind every memory they brought.
May the rains from the heavens
Fall gently upon them.
May the wildflowers and grasses
Whisper their wishes into the light.
May we reverence the village of presence
In the stillness of this silent field.
(C) John O'Donohue. All rights reserved.
Permission requests should be directed to:linda@johnodonohue.com
www.johnodonohue.com
Posts
This is a wonderful site. Thank you for keeping it alive.
ReplyDeleteI have shared this page with friends who lost their brother, son, and friend to suicide. He was my friend too and would have liked Anam Cara. He was a sensitive soul with a wonderful sense of humour and so smart; the kind you will always love. Once when a friend (also suffering from depression) called for help I went over and I felt my deceased friend right by my side, "we can handle this" he seemed to say to me.
I also sent this link to a friend who is writing poetry exploring impermanence and uncertainly and wrote about his parents' grave and about how the earth 'reabsorbs' life -- again an example of how 'death' is not going some place but rather shape-shifting.
Best regards from Canada
RL